Environment blog + Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog+ipcc
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WWF: World's richest reef system could soon succumb to climate changehttps://www.theguardian.com/global/the-coral-triangle/2015/sep/25/wwf-worlds-richest-reef-system-could-soon-succumb-to-climate-change
<p>Scientists are predicting the demise of most of the world’s coral reefs by as early as 2050. The Coral Triangle is the richest of them all and could be the first to go.<br></p><p>The publication last week of the Worldwide Fund for Nature’s (WWF) <a href="http://assets.wwf.org.uk/custom/stories/living_blue_planet/">Living Blue Planet report</a> painted a bleak picture of the state of the world’s oceans: marine populations, including reef ecosystems, have halved in size since 1970 and some species are teetering on the brink of extinction. Coral reef cover has declined by 50% in the last 30 years and reefs could disappear by as early as 2050, the report says, if current rates of ocean warming and acidification continue. WWF estimates that 850 million people depend directly on coral reefs for their food security - a mass die-off could trigger conflict and human migration on a massive scale. </p><p>100 million of these reef-reliant peoples live in the <a href="http://thecoraltriangle.com/">Coral Triangle</a> – singled out in the report as “richer in marine natural capital” than anywhere else on earth. Currently, fisheries exports from the Coral Triangle – which encompasses the waters of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Timor Leste – amount to around $5bn (£3.3bn), including 30% of the global tuna catch, and a lucrative trade in live reef fish for food markets, which is worth nearly $1bn (£655m). But there are serious questions about the sustainability of these fisheries. </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global/the-coral-triangle/2015/sep/25/wwf-worlds-richest-reef-system-could-soon-succumb-to-climate-change">Continue reading...</a>Marine lifeCoralClimate changeWildlifeCOP 21: UN climate change conference | ParisGlobal climate talksUnited NationsIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnvironmentOceansFri, 25 Sep 2015 03:00:06 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/global/the-coral-triangle/2015/sep/25/wwf-worlds-richest-reef-system-could-soon-succumb-to-climate-changePhotograph: Johnny Langenheim/www.johnnylangenheim.comPhotograph: Johnny Langenheim/www.johnnylangenheim.comJohnny Langenheim2015-09-25T03:00:06ZIndians are not impressed with US-China climate deal | Janaki Leninhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/india-untamed/2014/nov/18/indians-not-impressed-with-us-china-climate-deal
<p>Indian think tank says the US-China climate deal is neither historic nor ambitious, and would lead to dangerous temperature rises<br></p><p>The United States and China sprang a surprise last week with their <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/nov/12/china-and-us-make-carbon-pledge">secretly-negotiated deal to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions</a>. Although cheered as “<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2014/nov/12/china-us-carbon-deal-a-historic-milestone-in-the-global-fight-against-climate-change">historic milestone in the global fight against climate change</a>,” “<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/nov/13/the-us-china-deal-on-climate-change-is-this-centurys-most-significant-agreement-it-puts-g20-goals-to-shame">the real deal,</a>” a “<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-us-and-china-reach-a-landmark-climate-deal/2014/11/12/a1f49f4c-6aa5-11e4-a31c-77759fc1eacc_story.html">landmark</a>,” “<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/12/world/asia/china-us-xi-obama-apec.html">ambitious</a>,” and “<a href="http://theconversation.com/us-china-climate-deal-at-last-a-real-game-changer-on-emissions-34148">game-changer</a>” by western media, the agreement received a less than enthusiastic response in India.</p><p>The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a research and advocacy NGO based in Delhi, called it a “<a href="http://cseindia.org/content/world%E2%80%99s-two-biggest-polluters-%E2%80%93-us-and-china-%E2%80%93-sign-a-deal-cutting-greenhouse-gas-emissions">self-serving and business-as-usual</a>” deal and complained it was neither historic nor ambitious. The US and China had set targets that would cause a catastrophic 4C rise in global temperature, much higher than the 2C target set by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/india-untamed/2014/nov/18/indians-not-impressed-with-us-china-climate-deal">Continue reading...</a>EnvironmentIndiaGreenhouse gas emissionsClimate changeGreen politicsGlobal climate talksChinaIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Asia PacificTue, 18 Nov 2014 15:34:31 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/india-untamed/2014/nov/18/indians-not-impressed-with-us-china-climate-dealPhotograph: Kevin Lamarque/ReutersPhotograph: Kevin Lamarque/ReutersJanaki Lenin2014-11-18T15:34:31ZIPCC report: the scientists have done their bit, now it is up to us | Leo Hickmanhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/apr/14/ipcc-report-scientists-world-seize-opportunity-roadmap
The world must seize this remaining opportunity and act upon the timely roadmap that climate scientists have provided for us<p>So, there we have it. The seven-year task undertaken by hundreds of the world's leading scientists, who sifted through thousands of the latest peer-reviewed studies examining the causes, impacts and mitigation options of climate change, is over.</p><p>The last of the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change's (IPCC) three "working group" reports was published yesterday in Berlin and the take-home message was crystal clear: "The high-speed mitigation train needs to leave the station very soon and all of global society needs to get on board," said the chair, Rajendra Pachauri.</p><p>Climate change is real. We are to blame. It will get worse if we fail to act. The solutions are available and affordable. But time is short.</p><p>Please. Get. On. With. It.</p><p>"It will not cost the earth to save the planet … This report outlines the challenges, but it provides hope. Modest hope."</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/apr/14/ipcc-report-scientists-world-seize-opportunity-roadmap">Continue reading...</a>EnvironmentIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)World newsClimate changeUnited NationsGlobal climate talksMon, 14 Apr 2014 10:38:19 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/apr/14/ipcc-report-scientists-world-seize-opportunity-roadmapPhotograph: Bill Anders/Apollo 8/NASARising Earth taken by Apollo 8 crew member Bill Anders on December 24, 1968. Photograph: Bill Anders/Apollo 8/NasaPhotograph: Bill Anders/Apollo 8/NASARising Earth taken by Apollo 8 crew member Bill Anders on December 24, 1968. Photograph: Bill Anders/Apollo 8/NasaLeo Hickman2014-04-14T10:38:19Z'Events, dear boy, events' have put climate change back on the agenda | Tom Burkehttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/mar/26/events-climate-change-extreme-weather
<p>The decline of climate change on leaders' agendas has been reversed – not by new analysis, but two years of extreme weather</p><p>British prime minister, Harold Macmillan, was once asked what was the most difficult thing about his job. ‘Events, dear boy, events’ was his now famous reply. </p><p>Put more colloquially, and much less elegantly, stuff happens and politicians have to deal with it. Things that happen can transform the political landscape, for better or worse, in a flash as Margaret Thatcher discovered in 1982 when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. Her successful response to this event transformed a looming electoral defeat into victory.<br></p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/mar/26/events-climate-change-extreme-weather">Continue reading...</a>Climate changeIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Global climate talksEnvironmentNatural disasters and extreme weatherWorld newsGreen politicsWed, 26 Mar 2014 12:31:59 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/mar/26/events-climate-change-extreme-weatherPhotograph: JOHN JAVELLANA/REUTERSA man walking through smoke from fires in a part of Tolosa devastated by Typhoon Haiyan Photograph: JOHN JAVELLANA/REUTERSPhotograph: JOHN JAVELLANA/REUTERSA man walking through smoke from fires in a part of Tolosa devastated by Typhoon Haiyan Photograph: JOHN JAVELLANA/REUTERSTom Burke2014-03-26T12:31:59ZHeed the warnings in extreme weather – or risk losing Earthhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/jan/31/climate-change-extreme-weather-earth
<p>Make no mistake – climate change will hit us hard. We need to clean up the mess before it is too late <br></p><p>Unmitigated climate change will hit global infrastructure hard and test the limits of our way of life.<br></p><p>The recent cold spell united red and blue states: not in their interpretation of the event, but in their affliction. Weather can hit our fragile societies much harder than we care to admit.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/jan/31/climate-change-extreme-weather-earth">Continue reading...</a>EnvironmentClimate changeGreenhouse gas emissionsIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Natural disasters and extreme weatherTyphoon HaiyanClimate changeFri, 31 Jan 2014 13:01:14 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2014/jan/31/climate-change-extreme-weather-earthPhotograph: ERIK DE CASTRO/ReutersSurvivors stand in ruins of houses destroyed after super typhoon Haiyan battered Tacloban city in Philippines. Global warming is increasing extreme weather events, studies say. Photograph: Erik De Castro/ReutersPhotograph: ERIK DE CASTRO/ReutersSurvivors stand in ruins of houses destroyed after super typhoon Haiyan battered Tacloban city in Philippines. Global warming is increasing extreme weather events, studies say. Photograph: Erik De Castro/ReutersAnders Levermann2014-01-31T13:01:14ZThe US and China must show leadership on climate change | Nicholas Sternhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/dec/11/us-china-leadership-climate-change
As the European Union dithers, the world's two biggest carbon emitters must work together to help countries reach a climate deal<p>The world is approaching a watershed moment in its battle to limit the risks posed by global climate change, and international leadership from the United States is needed now more than ever before.</p><p><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-world-dangerous-climate-change">A report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in September</a> warned that emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are already raising temperatures, melting glaciers and the polar ice caps, elevating sea levels and changing the strength and frequency of many extreme weather events.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/dec/11/us-china-leadership-climate-change">Continue reading...</a>EnvironmentGlobal climate talksClimate changeNatural disasters and extreme weatherWorld newsUS newsChinaCOP 19: UN climate change conference | WarsawGreenhouse gas emissionsIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Renewable energyWed, 11 Dec 2013 16:54:38 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/dec/11/us-china-leadership-climate-changePhotograph: Dennis Brack/CorbisPresident Barack Obama makes a speech on a climate change. Photograph: Dennis Brack/CorbisPhotograph: Dennis Brack/CorbisPresident Barack Obama makes a speech on a climate change. Photograph: Dennis Brack/CorbisNicholas Stern2013-12-11T16:54:38ZCO2 levels hit record highhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/nov/06/co2-levels-hit-record-high
Concentrations of atmospheric CO2 continue rise to new average annual high, show greenhouse gas figures from the UN<p>The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has risen to a record high – again.</p><p>For the past nine years the UN World Metereological Organisation has produced <a href="http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/arep/gaw/ghg/GHGbulletin.html">an annual greenhouse gas bulletin</a>, with each year notching up a record high for average annual levels, and <a href="http://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/press_releases/pr_980_en.html">figures published on Wednesday</a> show 2012 was no exception.</p><p>...the last time so much greenhouse gas was in the air was several million years ago, when the Arctic&nbsp;was ice-free, savannah spread across the Sahara desert and sea level was up to 40 metres higher than today.</p><p>This shows that greenhouse gases are heating the climate more and more every year. For the last decade or so the oceans have kindly been sucking up this extra heat, meaning that surface temperatures have only increased slowly. Don’t expect this state of affairs to continue though, the extra heat will eventually come out and bite us, so expect strong surface warming over the coming decades.</p><p>GRAPH: What's happening to CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere <a href="http://t.co/kRUvAPHDDw">pic.twitter.com/kRUvAPHDDw</a></p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/nov/06/co2-levels-hit-record-high">Continue reading...</a>Greenhouse gas emissionsEnvironmentClimate changeClimate changeScienceIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnergyWed, 06 Nov 2013 10:00:52 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/nov/06/co2-levels-hit-record-highPhotograph: KACPER PEMPEL/REUTERSA man fishes in an artificial lake outside Belchatow Power Station, Europe's largest coal-fired power plant, October 31, 2013. Photograph: KACPER PEMPEL/REUTERSPhotograph: KACPER PEMPEL/REUTERSA man fishes in an artificial lake outside Belchatow Power Station, Europe's largest coal-fired power plant, October 31, 2013. Photograph: KACPER PEMPEL/REUTERSAdam Vaughan2013-11-06T10:00:52ZUN climate change panel: two graphs that tell the real story of the IPCC report | Duncan Clarkhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/oct/07/un-climate-change-panel-graphs-ipcc-report
The sensitivity of the climate is not as important as how much carbon we can 'safely' emit, as these graphs show<p>Millions of words have been written about the new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). But for me, two key messages stand out – one for its importance, the other for its lack of importance, relative to the attention that it has received. Since our <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/interactive/2013/sep/27/climate-change-how-hot-lifetime-interactive">interactive graph about temperatures in your lifetime</a> has generated so much interest, I thought I'd do a graph to explain each of these two points too.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/oct/07/un-climate-change-panel-graphs-ipcc-report">Continue reading...</a>EnvironmentGreenhouse gas emissionsClimate changeIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Mon, 07 Oct 2013 11:46:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/oct/07/un-climate-change-panel-graphs-ipcc-reportPhotograph: Ralph Lee Hopkins/CorbisA polar bear on sea ice in Svalbard, Norway Photograph: Ralph Lee Hopkins/CorbisPhotograph: Ralph Lee Hopkins/CorbisA polar bear on sea ice in Svalbard, Norway Photograph: Ralph Lee Hopkins/CorbisDuncan Clark and Kiln2013-10-07T11:46:00ZIPCC: Europe has been warming faster than the global averagehttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/oct/02/ipcc-europe-warming-faster-global-average
UN climate science panel's full report&nbsp;shows how climate change could pan out differently across the many regions of the world<p>Europe has been warming faster than the global average over the last 30 years, the UN's new climate report reveals.</p><p>This week, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released part one of its&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar5/wg1/#.Ukmcu4akoXd">scientific report</a>&nbsp;in full.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/oct/02/ipcc-europe-warming-faster-global-average">Continue reading...</a>Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnvironmentClimate changeEuropeWorld newsUK newsWed, 02 Oct 2013 09:24:53 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/oct/02/ipcc-europe-warming-faster-global-averagePhotograph: Jordan Mansfield/Getty ImagesThe IPCC climate report says scientists are 95% certain that humans are the "dominant cause" of global warming Photograph: Jordan Mansfield/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Jordan Mansfield/Getty ImagesThe IPCC climate report says scientists are 95% certain that humans are the "dominant cause" of global warming Photograph: Jordan Mansfield/Getty ImagesFreya Roberts for Carbon Brief2013-10-02T09:24:53ZClimate change is happening, so don't shoot the messenger | Andrew Simmshttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/oct/01/climate-change-ipcc
Despite the attention given to climate change sceptics, the overwhelming majority of scientific evidence supports those sounding the alarm – including the IPCC<p>Emperor Hu Hai of the Qin dynasty in ancient China had an aide killed when he tried to tell the emperor his power was ebbing away. There was an uprising against his brutal reign. It's one of history's earlier known examples of shooting the messenger. No one likes uncomfortable news and we can go to extraordinary lengths to avoid or suppress it.</p><p>When it comes to conveying messages about climate change all kinds of things can happen to the messengers, few of them pleasant. As a Greenpeace activist <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/19/greenpeace-protesters-arrested-arctic" title="">you might have a Russian gun shoved in your face at sea</a>. Concerned members of the British public worried about fracking <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/aug/19/caroline-lucas-arrest-balcombe-anti-fracking" title="">might experience violent arrest</a>. Scientists presenting the world with an extraordinary consensus on climatic upheaval find themselves <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage" title="">subjected by the media to a standard of evidence that it would be unthinkable to apply to, say, economists</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/oct/01/climate-change-ipcc">Continue reading...</a>Climate changeEnvironmentClimate changeScienceClimate change scepticismIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)World newsUnited NationsGlobal climate talksGreenpeaceEnvironmental activismMediaBBCNewspapers & magazinesLabourEd MilibandGreen politicsTue, 01 Oct 2013 11:11:45 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/oct/01/climate-change-ipccPhotograph: Graeme Robertson/GuardianWrong priorities? Labour leader Ed Miliband announced last week that he would freeze energy bills if elected. Photograph: Graeme Robertson for the GuardianPhotograph: Graeme Robertson/GuardianWrong priorities? Labour leader Ed Miliband announced last week that he would freeze energy bills if elected. Photograph: Graeme Robertson for the GuardianAndrew Simms2013-10-01T11:11:45ZOwen Paterson v the science of climate changehttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/sep/30/owen-paterson-science-climate-change
The <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/30/owen-paterson-minister-climate-change-advantages" title="">environment secretary has told the Tory conference there are advantages to global warming</a>, but he appears to be viewing the problem through a narrowly British lens<p><strong>The UK environment secretary, Owen Paterson, has told a fringe meeting at the Conservative party conference: "People get very emotional about this subject [climate change] and I think we should just accept that the climate has been changing for centuries."</strong></p><p>The UN's climate science panel, the IPCC, <a href="http://www.climatechange2013.org/images/uploads/WGIAR5-SPM_Approved27Sep2013.pdf" title="">said last Friday</a>: "Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and since the 1950s, many of the observed changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia … It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century."</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/sep/30/owen-paterson-science-climate-change">Continue reading...</a>Climate changeOwen PatersonConservative conference 2013ConservativesConservative conferenceGreen politicsPoliticsUK newsClimate changeScienceEnvironmentIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)United NationsWorld newsGlobal climate talksMon, 30 Sep 2013 11:13:05 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2013/sep/30/owen-paterson-science-climate-changePhotograph: Dominic Lipinski/PAOwen Paterson, the secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PAPhotograph: Dominic Lipinski/PAOwen Paterson, the secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PAAdam Vaughan2013-09-30T11:13:05ZClimate change report: live reaction to IPCC conclusionshttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage
On Friday, scientists in Stockholm presented the most exhaustive and authoritative state of climate science to date. Follow our live news and reaction as the UN's climate science panel publishes the first part of its fifth assessment report (AR5)<br /><br />&bull; <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/interactive/2013/sep/27/climate-change-how-hot-lifetime-interactive">Interactive: how hot will it get in your lifetime?</a><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T16:01:21.749Z">5.01pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>I'm wrapping up the liveblog now.&nbsp;</p><p>The two key headlines from today's IPCC report were:</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T15:54:28.060Z">4.54pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>T<a href="http://metofficenews.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/ipcc-5th-assessment-report-in-the-news/">he Met Office blog </a>has a good post today about whether climate models should have predicted the 'pause' in warming that's been discussed in light of the IPCC report:</p><p>The IPCC model simulations are projections and not predictions; in other words the models do not start from the state of the climate system today or even 10 years ago. There is no mileage in a story about models being ‘flawed’ because they did not predict the pause; it’s merely a misunderstanding of the science and the difference between a prediction and a projection.</p><p>As the IPCC states in line with our three papers on the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/news/recent-pause-in-warming">pause</a>, the deep ocean is likely a key player in the current pause, effectively ‘hiding’ heat from the surface. Climate model projections simulate such pauses, a few every hundred years lasting a decade or more; and they replicate&nbsp;the influence of&nbsp;the modes of natural climate variability, like the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) that we think is at the centre of the current pause.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T15:50:50.202Z">4.50pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong> notes that the head of the Heartland Institute in the US has rubbished the IPCC while at the same time admitting he hasn't even read today's summary report yet. She writes:</p><p>The Heartland Institute,<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/feb/15/leak-exposes-heartland-institute-climate">which has been spreading doubt about climate change for years</a>, has come out with its response to the IPCC report. No surprises. Heartland which is funded by the oil billionaire Koch brothers and ultra-conservative interests, has for years <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/19/ipcc-report-sceptic-groups-anti-science-campaign">put out a rival, spoiler non-IPCC report</a> denying the existence of climate change.</p><p>Its president, Joe Bast, said he had not yet read the report and did not directly address any of the findings but noted: “Over the history of the IPCC, each report has expressed a higher level of alarmism and a higher level of confidence in its certainty that man-made global warming will be harmful.”</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T15:43:14.090Z">4.43pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong> in the US has been digging into this question of how much carbon we can 'safely' burn.</p><p>She writes:</p><p>One of the most striking findings of the IPCC report is the idea of a carbon budget, and how quickly time is runniing out before we are locked into dangerous climate change – just 30 years.</p><p>Advances in climate-carbon models since 2009 mean that scientists are now able to draw a direct relationship between cumulative carbon emissions and temperature change. Burning more carbon dioxide over time leads to a certain temperature. Burning more than about 1tr tonnes of carbon – the carbon budget – would push warming over the danger point of 2 degrees.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T15:22:47.631Z">4.22pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Here's some more reaction from a business perspective, with PwC dryly noting that questions such as as how much heat is being absorbed the oceans are still "not the language of business decisions", and that the "communication divide" between science and business needs to be bridged.</p><p>Stephanie Pfeifer, chief executive of the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change, which represents more than 80 of Europe's largest investors, <a href="http://www.iigcc.org/files/press-release-files/IPCC_release_IIGCC_27_September_2013.pdf%20">said the report reconfirmed the need for urgent action to tackle global warming</a>:</p><p>“The IPCC’s report re-confirms the necessity of urgent action on climate change. Business as usual is not an option. Unchecked climate change will increase the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, harming societies and causing ever steeper economic losses.</p><p>“The substantial and sustained cut in greenhouse gas emissions called for by the IPCC to avert dangerous warming will only be achieved with determined leadership at a policy level. Transitioning to a low-carbon economy requires strong, long-term climate and energy policies which breed confidence and spur investment. At the moment, inconsistent and unreliable policy signals are deterring investors and hampering investment in low-carbon energy solutions.</p><p>"When it comes to climate change the world is like a 40 year old smoker. It's not too late for us to give up but it will get harder and more costly each year we delay. When scientists proved the link between smoking and cancer the message was clear: stop smoking. But when it comes to climate change and burning fossil fuels the scientists' warnings have to date been by and large ignored. Progress has been made but not at the pace required by the science.</p><p>“We welcome this latest scientific assessment from the IPCC and encourage businesses to look at the enormous commercial opportunities from taking early action and putting sustainability inside their operations. We know from our work with thousands of companies around the world that those that do act early are benefiting in lower energy costs and new business opportunities from a move to a sustainable, low carbon economy. ”</p><p>“There’s no doubt that the communication and the language of climate change play a part. Science debates have alienated many from the real issues. In reality, when working on climate risk assessments with companies, I don’t hear much debate about climate sensitivity or the heat of the ocean in 50 years’ time. It’s not the language of business decisions.</p><p>Instead, companies talk in terms of operational performance, asset management, business continuity, security of supply of commodities, energy and water, workforce health and well-being. How will investment in resilience and climate mitigation today, show a rate of return in the future? It’s okay that there are many uncertainties - businesses are experts at making decisions around uncertainty, and in scenario planning. Bridging this communication divide will be critical for action.”</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T15:08:14.060Z">4.08pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>We've just published some video highlights of this morning's IPCC press conference, which includes Ban Ki-moon's message, the IPCC's chairman Rajendra Pachauri and co-chair of the report, Thomas Stocker</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T14:58:09.039Z">3.58pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/chinas-choice">Jennifer Duggan, our Shanghai-based blogger</a>, has been interviewing Ma Jun, arguably China's best known environmental activist. He had this to say:</p><p>"In China we need to do our own part to try to combat global climate change. We also have to take measures to adapt to this [the impacts of climate change] just like many other countries."<br>"One thing most people would agree is that climate change would add further uncertainties to our already quite tight water supply situation in China."</p><p>“I hope to see an integrated solution created to deal with both the local pollution problem and the global climate change problem. Much of these two problems have a similar source, fundamentally it is our energy source that is predominantly dependent on coal, China burns half of the world’s coal. That is the source of the problem for our local smog problem and also for our climate change contribution. We need to deal with the coal issue."</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T14:52:48.928Z">3.52pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Here's Greg Barker, the UK's Conservative climate minister, on whether doubts should linger after today:</p><p>There are very few people now who deny that climate change is happening at all. The overwhelming majority of the world's leading scientists have come together, scientists that specialise in climate science to produce this comprehensive report that's more authoritative than any report that's gone before it. When every country signed up the UN agrees climate change is happening and all the major economies agree that we are causing that to happen and that we need to take action, I think we need to be listening to them, rather than the one or two sceptical voices.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T14:44:51.340Z">3.44pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>In case you were wondering what all this means for the UK, <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/climate-change-uk-weather-ipcc">has been talking to the Met Office to find out</a>. While today's IPCC report doesn't specifically go into the impact of climate change on the UK, the Met's Peter Stott has parsed what its projections mean – and it's basically a lot more rain.</p><p>Stott said: "There is an increased risk of extremes. As the atmosphere warms, it can hold more moisture, so there is more to fall when there are conditions that produce rain."</p><p>Those extremes would be reflected in temperature rises too, he said: "The warmest days will become hotter than they would have been."</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T14:30:51.040Z">3.30pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>A lot of the press conference questions today <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-52454face4b04fb60c6026ae">revolved around</a> whether or not there's been a "hiatus" in global warming over the last 15 years (<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-524584a2e4b008dd84fc9646">the Daily Mail's coverage today takes the same line</a>).</p><p>My colleague <strong>Damian Carrington</strong> has written a blow-by-blow post tearing the argument apart:</p><p>This willful idiocy is based on the fact that air temperatures at the Earth's surface have more or less plateaued since the record hot year in 1998.</p><p>What critics choose to ignore is that of all the extra heat being trapped by our greenhouse gas emissions - equivalent to four Hiroshima nuclear bombs every second - just 1% ends up warming the air. By choosing to focus on air temperatures critics are ignoring 99% of the problem.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T14:10:55.785Z">3.10pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>A Downing Street source tells me that "the prime minister welcomes the report, and has noted what it has to say about 95% certainty [that human activities are responsible for the warming the planet has experienced]."</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T13:59:33.961Z">2.59pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Here's the Liberal Democrat energy and climate secretary, Ed Davey, <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/response-to-intergovernmental-panel-on-climate-change-ipcc-fifth-assessment-report-ar5-the-latest-assessment-of-climate-science">whose official statement,</a> a Lib Dem spokesman tells me, can be taken as representative of the party's position:</p><p>The message of this report is clear - the Earth’s climate has warmed over the last century and man-made greenhouse gases have caused much of that global warming. The gases emitted now are accumulating in the atmosphere and so the solutions must be set in motion today. The risks and costs of doing nothing today are so great, only a deeply irresponsible government would be so negligent.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T13:53:58.989Z">2.53pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Following <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-52456afde4b0f2e0c7543703">Ed Miliband's tweet of support earlier</a>, Luciana Berger, the shadow energy and climate secretary, has put out this longer statement, having a pop at environment secretary Owen Paterson's climate beliefs in the process:</p><p>Today's IPCC report is a stark reminder from the world's leading climate experts of the scale of the challenge we face to preserve our planet for future generations.</p><p>David Cameron promised his would be the greenest government ever, but he is failing to show the leadership we desperately need to tackle climate change both at home and abroad. On his watch we have an environment secretary who doesn't believe in climate change, our carbon emissions are rising rather than falling and the government has failed to set a target a clean up our power system by 2030.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T13:43:55.576Z">2.43pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Some more reaction from the world of finance, courtesy of <strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong> in the US:</p><p>Mindy Lubber, president of the sustainable investor network, <a href="http://www.ceres.org/">Ceres</a>, said the report provided even greater certainty about climate change risks, which would push companies to act. She said companies with global supply chain, such as apparel companies which rely on cotton, would look to the report to guide their response to climate change.</p><p>“The key is beyond the science, climate change disrupts every aspect of the global economy including supply chains, global commodities, and the insurance industry which is seeing exponentially larger losses because of the weather,” Lubber said.<br>...<br>“ Smart companies who have to depend on commodities are starting to care more and more about climate change. Their bottom line now depends on that,” she said.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T13:24:46.320Z">2.24pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>The report is the top item on all the major newspapers and news sites in the UK, except for the Daily Mail, which is leading with photos of topless feminist protesters, and has buried the story down four or five screen’s worth of scrolling.</p><p><strong>BBC</strong></p><p>“Speaking at a news conference in the Swedish capital, Prof Thomas Stocker, another co-chair, said that climate change "challenges the two primary resources of humans and ecosystems, land and water. In short, it threatens our planet, our only home". ”</p><p>The study predicts that temperatures are set to rise by more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century without ambitious action to tackle emissions, and could rise by over 4C if emissions continue to increase.</p><p>Storms will become more intense and frequent, sea levels will rise by between 26cm (10in) and 82cm (32in) by the end of the century and the oceans will become more acidic, the assessment projects.</p><p>“The discussions, which took place at a brewery-turned-conference facility in central Stockholm were frustratingly slow but there is understood to have been little of the infighting between nations that has characterised past meetings.</p><p>One delegate told the Telegraph on Thursday night: "The good news is that the Saudis are not objecting to every word like used to happen [at previous meetings].</p><p>“Scientists involved in the talks said governments have been particularly careful about the wording of this report to make it as difficult as possible for climate sceptics to capitalise on any errors.”</p><p>“Our job is to do an assessment of the science</p><p>What impact that has on the public... is not for us to comment”</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T12:41:50.305Z">1.41pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong> writes:</p><p>The IPCC summary for policy holders released this morning is prepared specifically for government, but it will also guide decisions in the business community.</p><p>Nick Robins, who heads the climate change centre at HSBC, said business leaders will be studying the findings closely – especially those involved in managing risk.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T12:22:04.237Z">1.22pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>The climate sceptics have started to lash out, our environment editor <strong>John Vidal</strong> observes. Peter Miller, writing on the <a href="http://wattsupwiththat.com/2013/09/26/discussion-thread-for-ipcc-live-press-conference-webcast/#more-94748">Watts Up With That blog says</a>:</p><p>“I am watching the IPCC farce right now, North Korea would be proud of this type of stitch up. Interestingly, there is absolutely no applause for any of the speakers.... Natural climate cycles remain a heresy. ..This is little more than a jamboree for quasi-government bureaucrats.</p><p>One thing is clear: the version of events you will see and hear in much of the media, especially from partis pris organisations like the BBC, will be the opposite of what the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report actually says.... At the heart of the problem lie the computer models which, for 25 years, have formed the basis for the IPCC’s scaremongering: they predicted runaway global warming, when the real rise in temperatures has been much more modest. So modest, indeed, that it has fallen outside the lowest parameters of the IPCC’s prediction range. The computer models, in short, are bunk.</p><p>The general theme of obscurantism runs across the document. Whereas in previous years the temperature records have been shown unadulterated, now we have presentation of a single figure for each decade; surely an attempt to mislead rather than inform. And the pause is only addressed with handwaving arguments and vague allusions to ocean heat.</p><p>From the questions asked by journalists at the press conference, few cared about the science and the contradictions in what they were being told. The press corps are, almost to a man (and woman) environmentalists and only interesting in decarbonisation. The exceptions were David Rose and the guy from the Economist. So it is very uncertain that the problems in the WGI report will make the mainstream of public discourse.</p><p>I doubt many will be frightened by the UN IPCC, simply a political body masquerading as a scientific group. The thrill is gone.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T12:06:33.494Z">1.06pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong> has rounded up what US environmental organisations and politicians have to say (<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-524547aee4b04fb60c6026a8">see also John Kerry's statement earlier</a>):</p><p>Environmental campaigners in America saw the IPCC report as a chance to encourage Barack Obama's efforts to act on climate change. The Environmental Protection Agency <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/20/epa-limit-us-coal-plant-pollution">last week for the first time proposed limits on carbon emissions from future power plants</a>. The rules are a central pillar of Obama's climate plan and are facing an onslaught of opposition from the coal industry and Republicans in Congress.</p><p><strong>From Michael Brune, director of the Sierra Club</strong>:</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T12:03:15.479Z">1.03pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Damian Carrington</strong> has been talking to climate scientists at a briefing in London. He asked them what the biggest change has been since the IPCC’s last major report in 2007:</p><p>Prof Stephen Belcher, head of the Met Office Hadley Centre:</p><p>"The clear cut statement by the IPCC that the "human influence on the climate is clear" is a landmark"</p><p>"The report is further reinforcement that there is an unequivocal risk of dangerous climate change"</p><p>"Carbon dioxide has probably not been this high in the atmosphere for 3 million years. We understand the greenhouse effect, so what more information do people want?"</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T11:52:11.102Z">12.52pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Saleemul Huq, senior fellow in the thintank International Institute for Environment and Development’s climate change group and coordinating lead author in Working Group II of the IPCC <a href="http://www.iied.org/iied-statement-intergovernmental-panel-climate-change-s-new-report%20%20">says</a>:</p><p>The IPCC has confirms what many millions of people in the developing world are already well aware of, namely that the weather patterns have already changed for the worse. People in richer countries are vulnerable too, as recent floods, droughts and storms in Europe, North America and Australia have shown, but because of political inertia and powerful vested interests that have dominated media narratives for decades, they are less aware of the links between these impacts and their carbon emissions. Climate change affects us all and we must tackle it together.</p><p>It is becoming increasingly clear that we are responsible for warming of the Earth primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels. Predicting the implications of this or how the picture will change in the future are big challenges for scientists and today’s report by the IPCC, whilst recognising uncertainties, gives us the best possible insight into what may lay ahead. Those who predict imminent disaster are probably overstating the case, but equally those who claim that we can carry on regardless are likely to be burying their heads in the sand.</p><p>Today’s report shows the last 30 years were the warmest in 800 years. In that time our generation have grown up and scientists the world over have worked tirelessly to explain the problem. World leaders have barely lifted a finger. Our generation is organising a powerful global movement for change and we need world leaders to follow.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T11:43:45.606Z">12.43pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Here's a little roundup of our other pieces on today's report.</p><p>• <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/planet-oz/2013/sep/27/ipcc-report-climate-change-numbers">Graham Readfearn, one of our bloggers in Australia, has broken the IPCC report down by numbers, from 0.85 to 2,000,000,000,000</a></p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T11:30:49.494Z">12.30pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Labour leader Ed Miliband tweets that the IPCC report shows the "urgent need for long-term policy to tackle it." I'm sure I'm reading too much into it and it's pretty clear what Miliband means here, but "long-term", seems a slightly odd choice of phrase given today's report highlights is the urgency for short-term action, though obviously carried on through to the longterm.</p><p>Pachauri, the IPCC's chairman, <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-524547f0e4b0161c92c1c807">said earlier</a>: "There is a need for us to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, substantially, if we want to stabilise the Earth's climate."&nbsp;</p><p>IPCC report is a stark reminder of central challenge of global warming, its human cause and urgent need for long-term policy to tackle it</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T11:24:45.210Z">12.24pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Our US environment correspondent, <strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong>,&nbsp;has been speaking to&nbsp;<a href="http://www.princeton.edu/step/people/faculty/michael-oppenheimer/">Michael Oppenheimer</a>,&nbsp;a scientist at Princeton University, who she describes as "one of the leading voices for climate action in America for the last 30 years." He was a co-author on the next section of the IPCC report due out in the spring.</p><p>He said the report had a clear message for governments:</p><p>Taking the big picture view it says the earth has become significantly warmer and that it is extremely likely that most of the warming of the past 60 years is due to human made building up of greenhouse gasses.</p><p><strong>The most important message probably is that at the current rate humanity is going to blow through the 2 degrees celsius target governments have set as an indicator of where the warming gets dangerous.</strong> One of the most important points of the report is that without extreme effort we are just going to land in the danger zone.</p><p>Oppenheimer said this report goes out of its way in emphasising that humans have already reached the halfway point in terms of <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-52454aefe4b04fb60c6026aa">the trillion tonne limit</a>, the cumulative amount of carbon emissions that would raise temperatures above 2C.</p><p>Once that trillion tonne limit is crossed, the risks begin to pile up: very high sea-level rise, threats to food supply, frequency of heat waves, he said.</p><p>We have already emitted about half that amount, and we could emit the other half in the next 25 years. We are on the proverbial supertanker. It's going to be very difficult to turn it around, and the report does make the point very starkly that the 2 degree target is not going to be avoided if we just keep doing what we are doing.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T11:08:41.766Z">12.08pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Foreign secretary William Hague, who has been perhaps one of the most progressive voices on climate change in the coalition since it came to power in 2010, <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/foreign-secretary-welcomes-un-ipcc-report-on-climate-change">has put out this statement</a>. My emphasis in bold.</p><p>The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s latest assessment of the science confirms that climate change is already happening, as a result of human activity. The odds of extreme weather events, which threaten lives and property, have increased. Sea levels are rising, and ice is melting faster than we expected. The IPCC’s report makes clear that unless we act now to reduce carbon emissions, all this will continue to worsen in coming decades. Governments, businesses and individuals all have a responsibility to tackle climate change. <strong>The longer we delay, the higher the risks and the greater the costs to present and future generations.</strong></p><p>King's reappointment to a government role – primarily to guide the UK's stance in international climate negotiations, but he also to advise on aspects of the UK's greenhouse gas reduction – will cause consternation among some green campaigners, because of his controversial views on the progress of UN climate negotiations. He does not believe that the current style of talks, aimed at producing a global agreement similar to the Kyoto protocol of 1997, will bear fruit in the way their backers hope.</p><p>His view is that the US, which declined to ratify the Kyoto protocol, will not sign up to a legally binding international treaty on climate change because that would require a majority in favour in Congress, which he sees as unlikely. At the same time, he notes, China – the world's biggest emitter – is refusing to countenance a global agreement if the US stays outside.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T11:00:45.521Z">12.00pm <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Former US vice-president Al Gore calls today's report "an important milestone." Here's more reaction from Twitter:</p><p>The latest report by the IPCC is an important milestone in the study of climate science. <a href="http://t.co/kcgjnHSfsA">http://t.co/kcgjnHSfsA</a></p><p>IPCC confirms that human activity will further warm the Earth, with dramatic effects on weather, sea-levels and t... <a href="http://t.co/UGQkINaFmx">http://t.co/UGQkINaFmx</a></p><p>I've now read the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCC&amp;src=hash">#IPCC</a> summary. Message: it's as bad as we thought it was, and we have even more evidence. <a href="http://t.co/nFKchWXWuU">http://t.co/nFKchWXWuU</a></p><p><a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCC&amp;src=hash">#IPCC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23AR4&amp;src=hash">#AR4</a> Past 20 yrs Greenland, Antarctic ice sheets, glaciers lost mass, Arctic sea ice and N Hemisphere spring snow cover decreased</p><p>IPCC <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23AR5&amp;src=hash">#AR5</a> press conf: <a href="https://twitter.com/FT">@FT</a> journalist recognises finalised SPM is very different from the draft! JPvY: That's why leaks make little sense</p><p>Climate Panel Says Upper Limit on Emissions Is Nearing [under current emissions tracks] <a href="http://t.co/fK9LzAvlIX">http://t.co/fK9LzAvlIX</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ipcc&amp;src=hash">#ipcc</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nytimes">@nytimes</a></p><p>So, today is the day that a load of my lecture slides become outdated. I've been dreading this since 2007... <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCC&amp;src=hash">#IPCC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCCAR5&amp;src=hash">#IPCCAR5</a></p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T10:53:31.501Z">11.53am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-report-un-secretary-general">Our latest story</a>, from <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong> in Stockholm, is up now. Here's the top:</p><p>World leaders must now respond to an "unequivocal" message from climate scientists and act with policies to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the United Nations secretary-general urged on Friday.</p><p>"The heat is on. We must act," said Ban Ki-moon, as he invited world leaders to a special summit next year to forge a global agreement on emissions.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T10:42:11.935Z">11.42am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>This is useful.</p><p>It's easier to read than <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage#block-52455385e4b04fb60c6026b0">the update I posted earlier</a>.</p><p>A summary of the summary: the headline statements of today's IPCC Summary for Policymakers on two pages: <a href="http://t.co/JsvJ0uGgtm">http://t.co/JsvJ0uGgtm</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ipccar5&amp;src=hash">#ipccar5</a></p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T10:34:49.147Z">11.34am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T10:17:06.502Z">11.17am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Green party leader, Natalie Bennett, has this to say. I've not seen any statements from the big three parties yet.</p><p>The IPCC conclusions are clear. The scientific debate is over: the scientific conclusion is we need to take action now to avert catastrophic climate change.&nbsp;</p><p>"What needs to begin now is a serious, urgent debate about political and policy action.&nbsp;</p><p>Scientific evidence confirms that man-made climate change is a reality and that, without urgent action globally, the impacts will get worse. The time for debate is over, it is time to act.&nbsp;</p><p>"Rising temperatures will bring enormous economic and human cost. We need to support countries and communities most at risk in preparing to cope with disaster, to lessen the impacts of extreme weather events and help communities recover more rapidly when they do occur.&nbsp;</p><p>Conservatives, Labour, Liberal-Democrats should all welcome IPCC Report. All claim to want stewardship;international cooperation;fairness</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T10:10:04.595Z">11.10am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>If you haven't had a play already, <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/interactive/2013/sep/27/climate-change-how-hot-lifetime-interactive">try this interactive guide by my colleague Duncan Clark, which shows you what today's report means for temperature rises in your lifetime</a>&nbsp;and for children born today.</p><p>It illustrates pretty starkly the enormous challenge of avoiding temperature rises below 2C – something that Pachauri and others alluded to at the press conference this morning.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:58:16.198Z">10.58am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Connie Hedegaard, the EU's climate action commissioner, is referring here to the fact today's IPCC report says human activities are 95% likely to be behind the warming we're experiencing, up from the 90% the IPCC said in 2007.</p><p>It's the science, stupid! Climate change is happening, humans are causing it, and action is urgent <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCC&amp;src=hash">#IPCC</a></p><p>Whose side are you on? Those who want to act on 95% certainty or those who gamble on the last 5%? <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCC&amp;src=hash">#IPCC</a></p><p>The fifth Intergovernmental Panel on&nbsp;<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-change">Climate Change</a> report states with 95% confidence that humans are the main cause of the current global warming. Many media outlets have reported that this is an increase from the 90 percent certainty in the fourth IPCC report, but actually the change is much more significant than that. In fact, if you look closely, the IPCC says that humans have most likely caused&nbsp;<strong>all</strong>&nbsp;of the global warming over the past 60 years.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:54:04.744Z">10.54am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>The Economist asks:&nbsp;how can we be more certain about human role in the warming?</p><p>Stocker says simply: "Becuse we have multiple lines of independent evidence."</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:52:45.050Z">10.52am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>These are taken straight from the report - I think I've got all of them:</p><p>Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and since the 1950s, many of the observed changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia. The atmosphere and ocean have warmed, the amounts of snow and ice have diminished, sea level has risen, and the concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased</p><p>Each of the last three decades has been successively warmer at the Earth’s surface than any preceding decade since 1850. In the Northern Hemisphere, 1983–2012 was likely the warmest 30-year period of the last 1400 years</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:43:30.638Z">10.43am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Pilita Clark at the FT says the summary's reference to the slowdown in temperatures over the last 15 years appears to have been changed this week.</p><p>Stocker says:</p><p>There was made a change in placement or messages regarding this issue of climate change</p><p>I can tell you in these four days all of my colleagues present here in Stockholm were challenged</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:40:01.513Z">10.40am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Pachauri is leaving but says:</p><p>Wanted to bring to your attention</p><p>Two years ago we brought out two special reports</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:38:16.432Z">10.38am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Some more reaction to the report, from climate scientists.&nbsp;</p><p>Professor Corinne Le Quéré, Director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and a lead author on AR5, said:</p><p>"This is not just another report, this is the scientific consensus reached by hundreds of scientists after careful consideration of all the available evidence. The human influence on climate change is clear and dominant. The atmosphere and oceans are warming, the snow cover is shrinking, the Arctic sea ice is melting, sea level is rising, the oceans are acidifying, and some extreme events have increased. CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels need to substantial decrease to limit climate change."</p><p>“Further emissions of greenhouse gases will cause further global warming. The Arctic will warm most rapidly and the land will warm more than the ocean. There will be more hotter and fewer cold days. Mid-latitude areas that currently experience high rainfall will get more. Sea levels will continue to rise and snow and ice will melt back. If we follow the highest scenario of future greenhouse gases, the Arctic is expected to be ice-free before the middle of the 21st century.</p><p>“Avoiding 2 degrees of warming since preindustrial times will be very tough. We have already ‘spent’ more than two thirds of the CO2 emissions that we can afford to spend.”</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:36:27.003Z">10.36am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Bloomberg says if a 15 year period is less relevant and 30 years is what you'd normally look at, why did the IPCC even bother mentioning a 15 year period in the report?</p><p>Stocker answers:</p><p>It's important to look at the longer term</p><p>The financial crisis has reduced emissions by just a year</p><p>Currently what is very clear is we are not on that path [to 2C]</p><p>It is clear that this question [of how much the rate of warming has slowed down in the past 15 years] is very interesting for the scienitsts, but there are not many studies that would enlighten us... but when one analyses longer periods, it's not such an unusual case</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:28:11.759Z">10.28am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>There is no consensus in the scientific community over very high sea level rises</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:27:06.705Z">10.27am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>This science report has a big impact on Chinese way of life</p><p>If every Chinese person has a lifestyle like a US person, it would... be catastrophic</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:25:35.071Z">10.25am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>WWF</strong></p><p>Samantha Smith, leader of WWF’s global climate &amp; energy initiative, says:</p><p>“There are few surprises in this report but the increase in the confidence around many observations just validates what we are seeing happening around us. Since the IPCC issued its last big report in 2007, terrestrial glacier loss and sea-level rise has dramatically accelerated; the Arctic summer sea ice losses are higher than originally projected and the last decade was the warmest since 1850...&nbsp;Whichever facts may be discussed, debated or distorted, we cannot ignore the reality that we must act or face frightening new impacts. We know that most of the pollution that causes climate change comes from burning fossil fuels. WWF calls on governments and investors to stop investing in dirty energy and start an immediate and just transition by investing in renewables."</p><p>"The only logical response to a warning of this magnitude is immediate action. Unfortunately those who are taking this action are now in prison in Russia, while those that are most responsible are protected by governments around the world."</p><p>“Scientists are now as convinced that humans are causing climate disruption as they are that smoking causes cancer - politicians can’t continue to stand idly by while the world goes spinning towards climate catastrophe.</p><p>“Tough action is urgently needed to end the planet’s dangerous fossil fuel fixation and to develop the huge job-creating potential of renewable power – with developed nations like Britain taking the lead.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:21:00.332Z">10.21am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Jarraud chips in to reply to Rose, says it is an "ill-posed question."</p><p>You should distinguish the ability to predict temperature 10 years in advice, from the ability to predict 20-30 years in advance.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:17:59.293Z">10.17am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>David Rose of the Mail on Sunday asks: How much longer will the current hiatus [in temperature rises] have to continue for you to conclude there is something wrong with your models?</p><p>Stocker answers:&nbsp;</p><p>These climate models have shown remarkable agreement with the longer term trends that we have observed</p><p>This gives us confidence&nbsp;</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:11:55.766Z">10.11am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>On this question of how much more carbon we can burn without having dangerous levels of warming (carbon budgets), <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong> points out:</p><p>The IPCC carbon budget to stay below 2C is 800-880 gigaton carbon. 531 GTC had already emitted by 2011. So have 350GTC left, which is much less than the carbon stored in fossil fuel reserves.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:10:24.469Z">10.10am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Stocker is talking more on carbon budgets:&nbsp;</p><p>Certainly at the level of this SPM [summary for policymakers], we did not communicate specific numbers for when and how emissions should be reduced.</p><p>We given total amount of carbon that cannot be exceeded to stay below, say, 1.5C or 2C</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:07:13.685Z">10.07am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Our <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong> asks Pachauri and Stocker: on the question of carbon budgets [i.e. how much carbon can be burned if the world wants to keep temperatures between certain limits, such as 2c], it has the clear implication we cannot burn our fossil fuel reserves, doesn't it?</p><p>Pachauri replies:</p><p>An extremely effective instrument would be to place a price on carbon</p><p>To some extent, regulations, informing the public would make a difference</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:03:27.924Z">10.03am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Next question: How does AR5 better inform the ongoing UN climate negotiations?</p><p>Stocker responds:</p><p>In this report, we have available a large number of climate model simulations</p><p>Unfortunately the scenarios as they were defined several years ago</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:01:20.355Z">10.01am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Some more heavyweight reaction coming in.&nbsp;</p><p>Climate and water scientist Peter Gleick, tweets:</p><p>Here is the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23IPCC&amp;src=hash">#IPCC</a> message: We are as certain that humans are radically changing the planet's <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23climate&amp;src=hash">#climate</a> as we are that tobacco causes cancer.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T09:00:28.589Z">10.00am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>How can we be sure of&nbsp;predictions over longer term if models could not predict the 'warming hiatus' of late, a journalist asks.</p><p>Stocker answers</p><p>There are not sufficient observations of the uptake of heat, particularly into the deep ocean, that will be one of the possible mechanisms that would explain this warming hiatus.</p><p>Likewise, we have insufficient data... to establish a relationship between the causes of the warming</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:57:01.797Z">9.57am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>AFP asks if the report silences climate sceptics.</p><p>Pachauri says:</p><p>Our job is to do an assessment of the science</p><p>What impact that has on the public... is not for us to comment</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:55:11.253Z">9.55am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Suzanne Goldenberg</strong> writes that the US Secretary of State, John Kerry, <a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.climasphere.org%2F%23!article%2FStatement-from-Secretary-Kerry-on-the-Release-of-t&amp;sa=D&amp;sntz=1&amp;usg=AFQjCNH76ZNPLNNPKECnm4xbnI4dVveWOg">has just come out with a statement calling for action</a>, saying those who ignore or deny the IPCC findings are 'playing with fire'.</p><p>“Boil down the IPCC report and here’s what you find: Climate change is real, it’s happening now, human beings are the cause of this transformation, and only action by human beings can save the world from its worst impacts.</p><p>This isn’t a run of the mill report to be dumped in a filing cabinet. This isn’t a political document produced by politicians.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:54:05.363Z">9.54am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>We have concluded that in order to limit climate change, it will require continued and substantial reductions of emissions</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:52:31.313Z">9.52am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Another parameter, or variable, that has been very carefully assessed, is sea level.</p><p>These curves [for future sea level rises] go up, of course it depends on the scenario, on our choices today, whether sea level rise will be 24cm for the best estimate for the lowest scenario... or the higher value of 40cm or 63cm by 2100</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:50:01.799Z">9.50am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Stocker says of the 18 headlines in today's report, this one is key:</p><p>Human influence on the climate system is clear</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:46:31.163Z">9.46am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>You see how nuanced the language of the IPCC is</p><p>We don't go for headlines, we go for scientific assessments</p><p>He says it's "unfortunate" measurement systems do not yet permit full and global coverage [of temperature rises]</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:43:39.520Z">9.43am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>This report consists of over a million words</p><p>This report is a report that has undergone thorough review</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:39:34.029Z">9.39am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Climate change is the greatest challenge of our time</p><p>That says the Cancun agreement [of 2010]</p><p>He says they've only had a few hours sleep over the last two days</p><p>This is the first of three assessment reports&nbsp;</p><p>Will close with synthesis report in November 2014</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:35:12.112Z">9.35am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>More from <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong>, who says the&nbsp;scientists have addressed one of the sceptics' favourite aguments against climate change - the "mediaeval warm period" or medieval climate anomaly of the years 950 to 1250.</p><p>The scientists say:</p><p>continental scale surface temperature reconstructions show with high confidence multidecadal periods during the medieval climate anomaly that were in some regions as warm as in the late 20th century these regional warm periods did not occur as coherently across regions as tghe warming in the late 20th century (high confidence)</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:33:42.081Z">9.33am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Today's report has not been as well attended by media as the IPCC's 2007 report in Paris, says <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong>:</p><p>&nbsp;far fewer jounalists, notably more low-key</p><p>Groups are standing outside the conference centre holding placards saying: Stop the IPCC genocidal agenda and "what the IPCC does not understand: human creativity!" These are sceptics campaigning against IPCC</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:30:54.607Z">9.30am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Pachauri has just highlighted this passage in the report, which he calls a "succinct summary of what we are doing to the system:"</p><p>Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and since the 1950s, many of the observed <br>changes are unprecedented over decades to millennia. The atmosphere and ocean have warmed, the amounts of snow and ice have diminished, sea level has risen, and the concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased</p><p>I also want to highlight that each of the last three decades has successively warmed at the earth's surface</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:28:12.439Z">9.28am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>[AR5] Authors are bringing in fresh perspectives, they're bringing in new knowledge</p><p>We carried out citation of 9,200 scientific publications, roughly two thirds published since 2007</p><p>He says they also had over 50,000 comments provided by over a thousand reviewers.&nbsp;</p><p>Some of the findings of this report go far beyond what we were able to provide in AR4. I want to pay the highest tribute to scientists who have worked on this report. Symbolic of that is what we have been through in the last four days, we have worked two nights, fairly late at night.&nbsp;</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:25:30.704Z">9.25am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>We've come a long way [since AR4]</p><p>In 2010, Ban Ki-moon and I requested the InterAcademy council to carry out a detailed assessment of IPCC's processes and procedures. They come up with an excellent report. And the governments of the world who are essentially members of the panel, accepted and implemented the measures fully, except for one which had procedural issues.</p><p>Here's <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/30/rajendra-pachauri-un-climate-change-pressure-resign">our story from 2010 on that InterAcademy report</a></p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:22:47.647Z">9.22am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Achim Steiner</strong>, the head of the UN's environment programme, Unep, is talking now:</p><p>It is always a tribute to the IPCC that is has found a means of expressing what is certainty and what is uncertainty</p><p>The report is... once again a very dramatic reminder of the significance, the pace, and increasingly our ability to understand what is happening to the planet</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:19:30.490Z">9.19am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Despite this really overwhelming scientific consensus on climate change, we need further assessment, further projection</p><p>In particular to downscale this information at the local and regional level</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:17:42.541Z">9.17am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>The decade 2001-2010 was the warmest on record</p><p>Continuing the trend of global warming</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:16:18.871Z">9.16am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Jarraud says:</p><p>It is extremely likely that changes in our climate system in the past half century are due to human influence</p><p>It should serve as another wakeup call that our activities will have a profound impact on society not just for us but for generations to come</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:14:08.310Z">9.14am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>The world's eyes are on Stockholm today</p><p>Since 1990 the IPCC has provided regular unbiased assesments of the mounting impacts fo a warming planet.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:11:28.178Z">9.11am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Is now working - <a href="http://www.ipcc.ch/news_and_events/press_information.shtml#.UkU9VruXQt1">it's here</a></p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:10:53.420Z">9.10am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>John Vidal</strong> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2013/sep/27/climate-change-poor-countries-ipcc">has reported</a> on what consequences the IPCC report spells out for developing countries:</p><p>Low-income countries will remain on the frontline of human-induced climate change over the next century, experiencing gradual sea-level rises, stronger cyclones, warmer days and nights, more unpredictable rains, and larger and longer heatwaves, according to the most thorough assessment of the issue yet.</p><p>The last major UN assessment, in 2007, predicted runaway temperature rises of 6C or more by the end of the century. That is now thought unlikely by scientists, but average land and sea temperatures are expected to continue rising throughout this century, possibly reaching 4C above present levels – enough to devastate crops and make life in many cities unbearably hot.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:04:48.068Z">9.04am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Okay, the IPCC has published the report, <a href="http://www.climatechange2013.org/images/uploads/WGIAR5-SPM_Approved27Sep2013.pdf">the summary for policy makers of working group one </a>(PDF). The full version is out on Monday, but today's summary is the one the world will read.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T08:00:04.416Z">9.00am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p><strong>Fiona Harvey</strong> has filed this story on the report, which should be available online in the next few minutes:</p><p>The world is warming, and we are to blame. Already some of the results of this are "unprecedented" and dangerous. If we continue to pour greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the levels of warming will cause severe problems around the globe, and could soon be catastrophic.</p><p>That is the "unequivocal" message from the world's leading climate scientists, who have been meeting in Stockholm this week to thrash out the most comprehensive review to date of our knowledge of climate change.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T07:51:12.912Z">8.51am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Here's more insider info from <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong> in Stockholm:</p><p>The Guardian understands that one critical issue that has been satisfactorily resolved is that of the "pause" in the rise in global temperatures in recent years, which has been seized on by sceptics as evidence that warming is not happening. The report will say that transfers of heat to the oceans are partly responsible, and that the observed slowdown in the upward march of temperatures is well within the range of projections from the climate models, which reflect the natural variability of the climate as well as the effects of human interference.&nbsp;</p><p>Another key point is the question of a "carbon budget" - the amount of carbon that can be emitted if the world is to avoid the most dangerous levels of warming. The report will quote a figure of 270 petagrams of carbon, equating to 990 gigatons of carbon dioxide, that can be emitted globally by the end of the century. This would require deep cuts in emissions. But the main discussion of carbon budgets will have to wait for the next instalments of the report next year.</p><p>The "global warming has stopped" line from climate sceptics has always hung its hat heavily (and conveniently) on the freakishly anomalous warm year of 1998 as its starting point or baseline. As has been pointed out repeatedly by the Met Office and many climate scientists, this is tantamount to picking the sweetest of cherries. The rate of decadal rise in average global temperatures has clearly slowed over the past decade or so, compared to the previous couple of decades, but to say it has "stopped" altogether seems to be a misleading statistical sleight of hand.</p><p>It also strikes me as complacent, or even reckless, to assume that any slowing is proof that global warming is nothing to worry about. As many scientists in the field point out, there are several likely causes - both natural and anthropogenic variables - that could be masking or absorbing the so-called "missing heat", not least the oceans and/or soot released by the burning of coal in fast-industrialising nations such as China. To assume global warming has been falsified is, in my view, a very cavalier, wrong-headed display of long-term risk analysis.</p><p>Think <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23climate&amp;src=hash">#climate</a> scientists failed to anticipate surface warming slowdown? Think again. Great F Pearce article fr 2008 <a href="http://t.co/8I673LxChS">http://t.co/8I673LxChS</a></p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T07:37:43.019Z">8.37am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Why is this report so important?&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/people/mark-walport">Mark Walport</a>, the government’s chief scientist, was on Radio 4’s Today programme this morning, talking about its significance:</p><p>Extremely important moment</p><p>The evidence is absolutely rock solid</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T07:21:41.103Z">8.21am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Our correspondent, <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong>, writes this from Sweden, where the report's press conference is due to begin within the hour:</p><p>The world's media started arriving long before 8am at the old brewery in Stockholm where the world's leading climate scientists have been holed up all night, and for the past four days, hammering out the final details of their message to the world on climate change.</p><p>As media and NGOs arrived at the Stockholm waterfront in a grey dawn, the scientists were still locked in their hall making their final deliberations, which were supposed to finish before 8am CET (7am BST).</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T07:16:41.583Z">8.16am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>Here's <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/global-warming-breach-2c-threshold">our latest news story</a>&nbsp;on the key finding of the report:</p><p>By 2100, the average projection for how much warming will occur is expected to be slightly above the 2C threshold, considered to be the temperature above which it is considered that climate change will damage the global environment.</p><p>It is a crucial forum, not only because it is peopled by the most distinguished scientists in their field, but it was set up and works under the auspices of every one of the world's governments, who all have a say in its construction.</p><p><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/australia">Australia</a>&nbsp;is expected to experience a 6C average temperature rise on its hottest days and lose many reptile, bird and mammal species as well as the renowned wetlands of Kakadu by the end of the century, the latest Intergovernmental Panel on&nbsp;<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-change">Climate Change</a>&nbsp;report will reveal on Friday.<br>IPCC figures obtained by Guardian Australia show that Australia will experience an average overall increase of 2C by 2065, with that figure slightly lower at the coast. Beyond that, the temperature is expected to rise another 3C-4C by 2100.</p><p>The number of days that don't fall below 20C is projected to rise to 100 a year, with most of these warmer days in the north and on the east coast.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T07:06:42.565Z">8.06am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>The vice-chair of the IPCC,&nbsp;Jean&nbsp;Pascal van Ypersele, has confirmed that the report has been formally approved. He's also confirmed the report will be available for download at 9am BST. Scientists were working into the night on the final wording, our correspondent Fiona Harvey says.</p><p><a href="https://twitter.com/Karl_Ritter">@Karl_Ritter</a> I confirm the SPM has been approved by the WGI Session, then this action of WGI has been accepted by the Plenary. Solid now.</p><p class="block-time published-time"> <time datetime="2013-09-27T07:00:06.009Z">8.00am <span class="timezone">BST</span></time> </p><p>This morning, scientists will publish a landmark report on the state of climate change science, a huge undertaking that’s years in the making and whose influence will be felt for years to come. The report, by the UN’s climate science panel, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is being presented in Stockholm at 9am. Our environment correspondent, <strong>Fiona Harvey</strong>, will be on hand and reporting from the press conference in Sweden, which will be <a href="http://www.ipcc.ch/)">webcast live</a>.</p><p>I’ve written a little <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/26/ipcc-climate-report-questions-answered">background guide on the IPCC and today’s report</a>,&nbsp;which is actually just the first sliver of a vast body of work on climate change that’ll be published this year and in 2014. Here’s what we're getting today:</p><p>The summary of the first part of the so-called fifth assessment report (AR5), which focuses on the scientific evidence behind climate change and the human role in it. The IPCC has been meeting in Stockholm this week to discuss the final wording of the summary of Working Group One (WG1), which assesses the physical science, such as concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, temperature rises and climate models.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coverage">Continue reading...</a>Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnvironmentClimate changeClimate changeScienceGlobal climate talksGreenhouse gas emissionsUnited NationsWorld newsFri, 27 Sep 2013 16:01:21 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/27/ipcc-climate-change-report-ar5-live-coveragePhotograph: Julien Behal/PAScientists in Stockholm are due to present the most exhaustive and authoritative state of climate science to date. Follow our live news and reaction as the UN's climate science panel publishes the first part of its fifth assessment report Photograph: Julien Behal/PAPhotograph: Julien Behal/PAScientists in Stockholm are due to present the most exhaustive and authoritative state of climate science to date. Follow our live news and reaction as the UN's climate science panel publishes the first part of its fifth assessment report Photograph: Julien Behal/PAAdam Vaughan2013-09-27T16:01:21ZGreenpeace could learn a simple lesson on manners from George Washington | Leo Hickmanhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/apr/06/greenpeace-gene-hashmi-climate-sceptics
Threatening climate sceptics and warning Twitter followers you are armed with a knife are not smart moves from Greenpeace India's communications director, Gene Hashmi<p>It's a car crash. There's simply no other way to view it. On 31 March, <a href="http://gp-bc7f8.posterous.com/" title="">Greenpeace posted a blog</a> on to the front page of the international version of its website. It was written by "Gene from Greenpeace India" and it discussed the organisation's recent investigation into the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/mar/30/us-oil-donated-millions-climate-sceptics" title="">significant funding of climate scepticism by Koch Industries</a>.</p><p>So far, so normal. But on the following day – 1 April, no less – <a href="http://gp-bc7f8.posterous.com/post-removed-from-greenpeace-site" title="">part two of the blog went live</a>. It included the now infamous passage:</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/apr/06/greenpeace-gene-hashmi-climate-sceptics">Continue reading...</a>GreenpeaceClimate changeEthical and green livingIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnvironmentIndiaWorld newsGlenn BeckMediaTwitterTechnologyClimate change scepticismSocial mediaTue, 06 Apr 2010 14:14:12 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/apr/06/greenpeace-gene-hashmi-climate-scepticsPhotograph: Kate Davison/Greenpeace/AFP/Getty ImagesGreenpeace activists scale Mount Rushmore last July to hang a banner urging Barack Obama to get tough on climate change. But, says Leo Hickman, Greenpeace staff could learn from the writings of George Washington. Photograph: Greenpeace/AFPPhotograph: Kate Davison/Greenpeace/AFP/Getty ImagesGreenpeace activists scale Mount Rushmore last July to hang a banner urging Barack Obama to get tough on climate change. But, says Leo Hickman, Greenpeace staff could learn from the writings of George Washington. Photograph: Greenpeace/AFPLeo Hickman2010-04-06T14:14:12ZJames Lovelock on the value of sceptics and why Copenhagen was doomedhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/mar/29/james-lovelock
Read the full transcript of James Lovelock's G2 interview with Leo Hickman<br /><br />• <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2010/mar/29/james-lovelock-climate-change" title="James Lovelock: Humans are too stupid to prevent climate change">James Lovelock: Humans are too stupid to prevent climate change</a><br />• <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/mar/29/james-lovelock" title="">Read the interview in G2</a><p>When I recently interviewed James Lovelock for the G2 section of the Guardian, we spoke for nearly two hours about the various events of the past few months – a period in which he'd remained silent because he'd been over-wintering with his wife Sandy in her native Missouri. There was a lot to talk about: the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/series/climate-wars-hacked-emails" title="">stolen emails from the University of East Anglia</a>, the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/copenhagen" title="">UN climate summit in Copenhagen</a>, the intense scrutiny placed on the IPCC, and the rather nippy winter experienced across much of the Northern Hemisphere. As is inevitable with an interview appearing in the newspaper, space was at a premium so the quotes used were tightly edited. But, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2009/mar/16/climate-change-al-gore" title="">just as I did with my interview with Al Gore last year</a>, I have decided to publish a transcript of his key points here online for anyone interested in hearing in much more detail what Lovelock had to say on some of these controversial and much-discussed topics.</p><p>Lovelock's reaction to first reading about the stolen CRU emails [he later clarified that he hadn't read the originals, saying: "Oddly, I felt reluctant to pry"]:</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/mar/29/james-lovelock">Continue reading...</a>James LovelockClimate changeClimate changeClimate change scepticismIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Copenhagen climate change conference 2009EnvironmentScienceMon, 29 Mar 2010 17:31:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/mar/29/james-lovelockPhotograph: NASAApollo 11 view of the Earth rising over the surface of the moon. Illustration: NASAPhotograph: NASAApollo 11 view of the Earth rising over the surface of the moon. Illustration: NASALeo Hickman2010-03-29T17:31:00ZClimate change email scandal shames the university and requires resignations | George Monbiothttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2010/feb/02/climate-change-hacked-emails
The hacked emails shows that Phil Jones, after 20 years of failing to issue a correction, isn't the only one who should resign<p>This is a tough time for climate science. The Guardian's <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/feb/01/leaked-emails-climate-jones-chinese" title="new revelations about the hacked emails from the Climatic Research Unit (CRU)">new revelations about the hacked emails from the Climatic Research Unit (CRU)</a> at the University of East Anglia might help to explain the university's utter failure to confront its critics. They could also explain why the head of the unit, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/georgemonbiot/2009/nov/25/monbiot-climate-leak-crisis-response" title="Phil Jones">Phil Jones</a>, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jan/27/uea-hacked-climate-emails-foi" title="blocked freedom of information requests">blocked freedom of information requests</a> and proposed that material subject to those requests be deleted. He has been <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jan/27/uea-hacked-climate-emails-foi" title="">spared a criminal investigation only because the time limit for prosecutions has expired</a>.</p><p>The emails I read gave me the impression that Phil Jones had something to hide. Now we know what it might have been. The Guardian has discovered that <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/feb/01/dispute-weather-fraud" title="">Jones appears to have suppressed data that undermines a paper he published in Nature in 1990</a>. The paper claimed that Chinese weather stations show that local heating caused by urbanisation has very little effect on the temperature record. It now seems that much of the data they used is worthless and the documents required to validate it do not exist. The paper might be 20 years old, but in a way that makes the scandal worse: Phil Jones has had 20 years in which to issue a correction. Even after the <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/nov/27/climate-email-hackers-access-month" title="hacking in October last year">hacking in October last year</a>, he has still not done so.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2010/feb/02/climate-change-hacked-emails">Continue reading...</a>Hacked climate science emailsClimate changeClimate change scepticismClimate changeIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnvironmentRajendra PachauriFreedom of informationTue, 02 Feb 2010 18:05:37 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2010/feb/02/climate-change-hacked-emailsPhotograph: University of East AngliaProfessor Phil Jones, director of the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) and a professor in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, who, at the heart of the scandal, failed to make a vital correction for 20 years. Photograph: University of East AngliaPhotograph: University of East AngliaProfessor Phil Jones, director of the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) and a professor in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, who, at the heart of the scandal, failed to make a vital correction for 20 years. Photograph: University of East AngliaGeorge Monbiot2010-02-02T18:05:37ZUN climate chief jabs back at allegations of financial impropriety - but fails to land a blow | Ian Wyliehttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/jan/20/pachauri-personal-attacks
A seven-star Dubai backdrop as Rajendra Pachauri awards $1.5m prize to Toyota won't help the climate science cause<p>The chairman of the UN's panel of climate scientists, Dr Rajendra Pachauri, has been under an unwelcome spotlight this week. First, he <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jan/19/un-climate-scientists-himalayan-glaciers" title="announcing a review into the panel's claim Himalayan glaciers would disappear by 2035">announced a review into the panel's claim that Himalayan glaciers would disappear by 2035</a>. Then he had to defend himself from reports by the Sunday Telegraph that he's financially profiting from the influence of his UN role – a <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2010/jan/04/climate-change-delay-denial" title="claim he trenchantly denies">claim he trenchantly denies</a>. Now, Pachauri has come out fighting, calling himself "unsinkable".</p><p>Yesterday in Abu Dhabi, he described recent criticism from British newspapers as "personal". At the weekend, an investigation of the finances of The Energy and Resources Institute (Teri), a research body run by Pachauri, was <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/climatechange/7007891/The-curious-case-of-the-expanding-environmental-group-with-falling-income.html" title="published by The Sunday Telegraph">published by The Sunday Telegraph</a>, whose reporters alleged Pachauri had a "lavish personal lifestyle" and owned "$1,000 suits".</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/jan/20/pachauri-personal-attacks">Continue reading...</a>Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)GlaciersClimate changeEnvironmentWorld newsClimate changeScienceRajendra PachauriWed, 20 Jan 2010 13:08:40 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2010/jan/20/pachauri-personal-attacksPhotograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesRajendra Pachauri, chairman of the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesRajendra Pachauri, chairman of the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Photograph: Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesIan Wylie2010-01-20T13:08:40ZHelp us decipher the UN's draft climate change agreementhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2009/sep/28/un-draft-climate-change-agreement
The UN's draft climate change agreement is crucial, but full of jargon. We want your help turning it into plain English<br />• <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/datablog/2009/oct/02/copenhagen-text-carbon-emissions">Datablog: which words were used?</a><br />• <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2009/sep/28/copenhagen-climate-change">Add your thoughts on the negotiating text</a><p>Negotiators have released a <a href="http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2009/awglca7/eng/inf02.pdf" title="draft version of a new global agreement on global warming">new draft version of a global agreement on climate change</a>, which is widely billed as the last chance to save the planet from the worst ravages of climate change.</p><p>Running to some 200 pages, the draft agreement will be discussed for the first time today when officials from 190 countries gather in Bangkok for the latest round of climate talks. They aim to agree a final, shorter version at a <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/may/01/q-and-a-copenhagen-summit" title="UN meeting in December in Copenhagen">UN meeting in December in Copenhagen</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2009/sep/28/un-draft-climate-change-agreement">Continue reading...</a>Climate changeCopenhagen climate change conference 2009EnvironmentUnited NationsWorld newsIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)Kyoto protocolGlobal climate talksRajendra PachauriMon, 28 Sep 2009 14:32:09 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2009/sep/28/un-draft-climate-change-agreementPhotograph: Johanna ParkinJargon - what does it all really mean? Photograph: Johanna ParkinPhotograph: Johanna ParkinJargon - what does it all really mean? Photograph: Johanna ParkinDavid Adam, environment correspondent2009-09-28T14:32:09ZGoogle Earth launches climate simulator | Leo Hickmanhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2009/sep/25/google-earth-climate-change-copenhagen
Al Gore stars in promo video for new emissions scenario features developed by Google Earth to coincide with Copenhagen climate conference<p>If a picture is worth a thousand words, how many words should we afford <a href="http://earth.google.com/" title="Google Earth">Google Earth</a>? Hours can be lost skydiving your way towards your favourite locations. Seeing somewhere you know so well from above provides valuable extra servings of knowledge and perspective.</p><p>In collaboration with the Danish government and others, we are launching a series of Google Earth layers and tours to allow you to explore the potential impacts of climate change on our planet and the solutions for managing it. Working with data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we show on Google Earth the range of expected temperature and precipitation changes under different global emissions scenarios that could occur throughout the century.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2009/sep/25/google-earth-climate-change-copenhagen">Continue reading...</a>Climate changeCopenhagen climate change conference 2009Greenhouse gas emissionsIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)EnvironmentGoogleYouTubeTechnologyInternetGlobal climate talksRajendra PachauriFri, 25 Sep 2009 10:16:31 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/blog/2009/sep/25/google-earth-climate-change-copenhagenPhotograph: Google.comScreen grab from Google Earth Climate Introductory Tour showing Greenland icecap in 2007. Photograph: Google.comPhotograph: Google.comScreen grab from Google Earth Climate Introductory Tour showing Greenland icecap in 2007. Photograph: Google.comLeo Hickman2009-09-25T10:16:31Z